


You smile like sunset.

by My_s0ul_is_yell0w



Category: Shadowhunters (TV), The Shadowhunter Chronicles - All Media Types
Genre: Crushes, First Dates, First Meetings, Fluff, M/M, Misunderstandings, Strangers to Lovers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-28
Updated: 2019-12-28
Packaged: 2021-02-24 20:55:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,789
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22004332
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/My_s0ul_is_yell0w/pseuds/My_s0ul_is_yell0w
Summary: A sleepy cop and a not-break-in
Relationships: Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood
Comments: 6
Kudos: 97





	You smile like sunset.

**Author's Note:**

> Made up by a very sleepy brain.

'You do remember that I am a cop right? I can keep an eye on the apartment until you come back.' 

Alec couldn't help but smile at the antics of his favorite neighbor. He might not be a social butterfly but Catarina was one of the very few people he truly cared about outside his family.

'Yes.. yes.. I know. I don't know why I am so fidgety. I keep thinking I forgot something. '

Catarina was pacing up and down while ticking her mental checklist as well as the one on her phone. Alec knew that if she kept this up any longer, she is definitely going to miss the flight. He lifted her bags onto his shoulders and pushed her out of the apartment along with the suitcase and locked it up behind them.

'Keep the keys with you. And don't forget to feed Chairman. If something happens to that damn cat..'

'Magnus will kill you.. I know. You've told this a thousand times Cat... I can take care of him for a few days even though he is a little menace.'

'Just like his owner'.

Catarina couldn't help but smile at the thought of Magnus. Even though she is going to meet her family, a few days extra in London wouldn't hurt. She made plans to catch up with Magnus once the work is done. Maybe convince him to come back. He had been gone for far too long. She missed her best friend. Ragnor's shout from below brought her back before getting lost in thoughts and she pulled Alec in for a hug.

'Thank you, Alec. Thank you so much.'

'You don't have to Cat. Go and have your much-deserved vacation. Stay safe. '

'Take care, Alec'

'Bye Cat'.

Alec walked back into his apartment and got ready to leave for work. Today is going to be hectic. All the pending cases and piled up paperwork is going to kill him. It's his day off tomorrow and the thought of sleeping 12 hours straight post duty was the only thing which is going to keep him awake the whole day. Grabbing a piece of toast and his usual cup of coffee in the go-to cup, he rushed out of the apartment. Throughout the cab ride, a certain stranger kept appearing in his thoughts. Alec had heard stories of Magnus since the day he became friends with Catarina. The first time he went into their apartment and looked through the photos on the wall, he found a beautiful face to put together with beautiful stories he heard. Since then he never missed a chance to visit his neighbors in the hope of finding new pictures of the said stranger. He may or may not have admitted to himself and only himself that he is having a huge crush on someone he knew only through few stories because out loud, it sounded utterly ridiculous.

The whole day was a mess as he had predicted. The fact that the toast he ate in the morning was the only thing in his stomach did nothing to tone down his grumpiness. He had been snapping at everyone by evening. And since he won't be in for tomorrow, he had to somehow finish the remaining paperwork. By the time he left the precinct, he didn't even have the strength to walk. But sleeping in the empty stomach wouldn't be a good idea considering that he is planning to stay in the bed for the entirety of the next day. He somehow spent his remaining energy in getting takeout and showering after reaching home. Half asleep, he chugged in whatever was in the boxes he got and dragged himself to the bed. Alec couldn't even bother to get the switches before falling asleep.

That might have been the reason why he had to shut his eyes close when he woke up somewhere in the middle of the night. He groaned and tried to bury his head into pillows which proved to be worthless and made him get up anyways. He practically ran back to bed after switching the lights off so as to not lose his sleep. Minutes later Alec woke up for a second time to a dull thud which was the actual reason he woke up in the first place. His cop senses kicked in and he was wide awake the next second.

He had been gone for far too long. 4 years was a really long time. New York had been his home since forever. And he had built his whole life there with his favorite people by his side. Everything he dreamed of as a child was happening and almost all of his dreams had come true and Magnus was the happiest person in the world then. And Camille was the love of his life. Or so he thought. Until he realized that she had been fooling him for years. Magnus couldn't stay any longer in New York, every nook and corner reminding him of her. He had to escape the suffocation and he did. He knew he was hurting his friends when he left without informing them but he was ashamed of running away and hiding. Until a month later when he sent them a letter telling them where he was and begging for their forgiveness. Being the true friends they are, Catarina and Ragnor and Raphael had taken the next flight to London and stayed with him until they made sure that he will be fine on his own.

Magnus couldn't control the excitement and he was almost jumping around and twisting and turning that even the little girl sitting next to him was giving him a stink eye. He was going home. After four long years, he was going home. In his hiatus, Magnus had built himself back up from scratch. He still had jitters thinking about Camille but he can't hide from his memories forever. He can't lose his home and his friends and his dream life for someone who has no value for relationships. He is going home. He is going to get his life back. 

If everything had gone according to his schedule, he would be sleeping in his comfortable bed after a full meal in his apartment right about now. His flight would have landed somewhere around 4 and he would have had enough time to buy the cake he had pre-ordered before heading home and give Catarina and Ragnor an early wedding anniversary surprise which would then be followed by lots of hugs and tears and takeout. But alas, the universe had different plans. His flight was delayed and he is standing in front of their apartment door at an ungodly hour. Thanks to the delay, he fell asleep in the flight so he is wide awake now. There was a slight hesitation while standing there but he chalked it up to nerves and decide to knock. But then where would be the fun in that? 

Magnus grinned to himself and opened his wallet where he had saved his key all these years. Praying that they hadn’t changed the lock, Magnus inserted the keys.  
‘Yes’  
He whispered to himself. It was pitch black inside, obviously. But Magnus remembered his home clearly. He knew where everything went. Hell, he was the one who decorated the whole place. What he didn’t remember was that he hadn’t lived there for four years. So no one can blame him when he stumbled upon an umbrella stand placed next to the door. He cursed himself before setting the cake on the floor safe and falling on to the knees to get hold of that forsaken piece of furniture before the sound woke up his friends. Luckily the carpet was still there and it muffled the sound. He stayed frozen for a while listening for any noise coming from the bedroom. Once everything seemed quiet, he kept his hands on the wall and walked along with it, feeling for any more obstacles.

Urgh.. He had to redecorate the apartment first thing in the morning. Who the hell keeps a painting or a photo or whatever that had fallen down on this wall? He stopped again to make sure that the bedroom was still silent. This is not going well. At this rate, he was surely going to wake them up. He slowly walked backwards to his bag to get his damned phone. He has to set the cake up before waking them. Sitting on the floor, he searched inside his bag and slowly pulled everything out and kept on the floor until he found the phone. Getting up with the phone light switched on in one hand and cake in the other, Magnus walked towards the kitchen counter. He barely had time to keep the cake on top of it before he was tackled from behind and thrown on to the ground and in the next second, Magnus was lying face down with his hands pinned behind and held down by something or someone really heavy. 

The intruder was strong. Alec indeed had the element of surprise but it was proving a bit difficult to hold him down. Even though his adrenaline is running high, his body was still fatigued from heavy work and inadequate sleep. He should have called for a backup before barging in. But finding the door unlocked and the mess in the doorway had him on high alert and his first instinct was to take down the burglar. 

‘You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say..’

He was not on duty and there was no point in reading the rights but he can at least scare the intruder into keeping quiet. Alec felt the person freezing for a second before struggling to get out of his grip. 

‘Who the hell are you? What the fuck is going on here?’ 

‘It will be better for both of us if you co-operate’. He was starting to get irritated. This idiot had to break in at this hour and was acting like Alec was the one who is making a mistake. 

‘Why would I co-operate? Why am I being arrested at my own home?’ 

Alec couldn’t help but sigh. Did he really think this age-old trick is going to work? This is getting ridiculous. The sooner he can put the guy in handcuffs, the sooner he can call for backup and hand over the guy and go back to sleep. But he doesn’t have to know that. 

‘Just stop struggling, I have already called for backup. There is no point in fighting.’

‘Listen, Officer, I don’t know who you are or how you ended up here at this time. This is my home but I have been out of the country for the past four years and I came up here thinking I could surprise my friends Catarina and Ragnor. If you have any doubt you can wake them up and ask.’

Alec stilled. Wait...This can’t be..

Magnus could feel the cop going rigid above him. He wasn’t even sure it was a cop. But he had to get out of this somehow. The moment he felt the guy’s grip loosening, he flipped them and in a fraction of a second, Magnus was on top, staring down at the face of definitely-not-a-cop. Even though he hasn’t been in town for a few years, he would have known if the cops started wearing tank tops and boxer shorts on duty. But there was something familiar about the face that was staring up at him with widened eyes. 

‘Magnus.. ?’ He was equal parts shocked and confused when the guy called his name. But then there was only one cop he knew who lived so close by his apartment.

‘Alec..?’ 

The grainy pictures Cat had sent him didn’t do the guy justice. It might have been dark and they might have been lying on top of each other but the dim light from the phone was enough to make out the features of that pretty face.

‘Woah..You really are pretty.’ Alec’s voice was barely above a whisper and Magnus doubted whether he actually meant to say it out loud. 

‘Why thank you Alec.’ Magnus couldn’t help but tease him a bit. 

Alec’s eyes widened for a second before screwing it shut and shaking his head.  
‘Did I say that out loud?’

He was being too adorable for Magnus to not laugh at. 

‘ Yes, you did. And for what its worth, I think you're pretty too.’ 

Magnus whispered back. His eyes dropped to those gorgeous lips and Magnus had an insane urge to lean down and kiss them. He could see them lifting up at the corners and Magnus reluctantly looked up to Alec’s eyes only to see them staring right back at him. 

‘So, is this how you make people fall for you? Ambush them in the dark in tank tops?’ Magnus asked with a chuckle. They were staying too close to have a staring competition and he had to somehow break the tension building up. Awkward joke it is. 

‘I am so sorry Magnus. Cat didn’t tell me anything about you coming back. I honestly thought you were some kind of a burglar.’

‘It wouldn’t be a surprise if she knew, would it?’ 

They were still talking in whispers and Magnus knew he should get up but he might have been enjoying this a little too much. Having had a crush on this guy through mere photos and the descriptions Cat had given him might also have been a plus but no one needs to know that.

‘She still doesn’t know?

‘Nope. Not until now.'

‘Oh, Okay.’ 

Alec still looked a bit puzzled and Magnus could feel his fingers drawing patterns on his lower back where Alec was holding him. It didn’t look like Alec was aware of what his fingers were up to.

‘Why are we still whispering?’ They had met literally five minutes ago and Magnus had already fallen for that adorable scrunching up of Alec’s eyebrows whenever he looked confused. 

‘Because we don’t want to wake Cat and Ragnor until I have set up their cake. I still don’t know how they are sleeping through all this. We were not exactly silent all this time.,

‘Umm...Magnus..?’

‘Yeah?’

‘They are not here.'

‘What.. ??’ 

‘Yeah. They left for London this morning. Cat’s mom's birthday. But they told they’ll be back before the anniversary. Maybe you can buy another cake then.’

Alec was smiling and it was quite easy to get distracted in that. But knowing that all his surprise plans ended up in the water was more than enough to fight it. Magnus couldn’t believe his bad luck. He got up groaning and walked to switch on the lights. 

‘I should have thought this through. I was so excited to come back that I forgot everything. I should have called them beforehand.’ He went to the passage and started getting his stuff. 

‘It's okay, Magnus. They 'll be back in a week anyway. We won't tell them you're here. Maybe we can arrange a small party or something.’ Alec had got up from the floor and was now walking towards him. He took one of Magnus’ suitcase and went into his room. 

‘That’s actually a great idea. When are you free?’ 

'What? For the party? I am not sure about next week. I’ll let you know in a few days.’

Magnus was unsure about asking someone out a date at the first meeting itself but this was Alec. The same Alec he had been hearing about through his friends for the past two years. This all looks so familiar. And Alec had indeed said he was pretty. Maybe he stood a small chance. 

‘No. Not for the party.’

Between the two of them, all his possessions were shifted inside in a matter of minutes.

‘Then?’

‘We should plan for the party. Why don’t we discuss it in detail? Maybe over a cup of coffee? ‘

The bright smile that lit up the whole of Alec’s face proved that Magnus was right to hope. He felt a horde of butterflies swarming around in his stomach. This was not the first time he was asking someone out. But Alec felt special.

‘Why don’t we make it lunch? I had a really long day and terribly sleepy right now that I’ll probably sleep the whole morning since tomorrow is my day off. Why don’t I pick you up for lunch? 

‘It’s a date.'

‘It’s a date’ 

Alec had replied along with that shining smile of his. Maybe coming back was the right decision. Maybe he can rewrite all his memories. A second chance. And a new beginning.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading. Please let me know in reviews.


End file.
